Coping with Evil Unbound

Either God cannot abolish evil or he will not; if he cannot then he is not all powerful; if he will not then he is not all-good. Thus philosopher Antony Flew opens his 1954 essay "Divine Omnipotence and Human Freedom " with a restatement of St. Augustine's dilemma from his Confessions.
For nonbelievers, this dilemma is the central intellectual roadblock. For believers, the defenses are many; yet none fully refute the skeptics' first and most vexing line of attack.
Evil as a moral construct has no universally recognized definition. Evil to many is a late-term abortion; to others abortion is a blessing. Evil to many is rape; to extremist Muslims, a rape victim should be condemned to beheading or stoning to death.
Evil as an absolute moral construct is a modern theological device. For those reared and who adhere to orthodox Christian values, reverence for human life, whatever its origin, station, age, gender, class, or race seems intrinsic, obvious to anyone, the antipode of evil. Yet...(Read Full Article)